The Syrian intellectual and religious landscape is experiencing a state of acute fragmentation among conflicting models: a political Islam that has transformed religion into a narrow ideology, a popular Islam that has become confined to rituals without any real impact, and a modernist Islam that has become so open that it has lost its distinctiveness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This paper proposes the concept of “civilizational Islam” as an alternative framework that revives the urban logic that shaped the Syrian mentality for over fourteen centuries. The paper draws on three theoretical frameworks: Ibn Khaldun’s theory of “human civilization,” Malik Bennabi’s philosophy of “civilized man,” and Mustafa al-Siba’i’s vision of “value achievement,” while also utilizing recent international reports on the economic and social realities of Syria.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The paper concludes that the features of “civilizational Islam” (based on citizenship, beauty, and effectiveness) constitute a practical framework that enables religion to be a driving force for national development, free from ideological conflicts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Syria is passing through a highly sensitive historical moment as more than fourteen years of conflict come to an end, with international reports painting a harsh picture of the economic and social landscape.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For example, a World Bank report published in October 2024 estimated the cost of reconstruction at between $140 billion and $345 billion, with a projected figure of $216 billion. This is equivalent to ten times Syria’s projected GDP in 2024. Meanwhile, a report by ESCWA and UNCTAD states that the Syrian economy has shrunk by two-thirds, and that half the population lives in extreme poverty.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
However, the deeper challenge may be an intellectual and civilizational one. Any reconstruction without a unifying value-based vision is merely a rehashing of stones.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This underscores the urgent need to re-examine religious discourse itself, extricating it from the pitfalls of ideology, ritual, and fluidity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Syrian Future Movement, which bases its vision on “preparing the virtuous and reform-minded citizen in work, science, material and spiritual life, culture, and belief, and on the values \u200b\u200bof the Abrahamic religions, human rights, and respect for pluralism,” places the building of a civilized human being at the heart of its project.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Within this framework, this paper begins with a central question: How can a model of “civilized Islam” be established that draws on 1500 years of coexistence in Syria, transcends the shortcomings of prevailing models, and leads to a viable renaissance project in the post-conflict phase?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This paper adopts a descriptive, analytical, and synthetic methodology, combining three approaches:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Critical Deconstruction: Analyzing the shortcomings of the three main Islamic models (political, popular, and open modernism) without neglecting their potential contributions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Theoretical Foundation: Returning to Ibn Khaldun’s theory of “human civilization,” the philosophy of Malik Bennabi, and the thought of Mustafa al-Siba’i, to form a comprehensive frame of reference.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Contextual Application: This framework is linked to contemporary Syrian challenges, drawing on credible reports from the World Bank, ESCWA, UNCTAD, and the UNDP.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The scope of this research is limited to the theoretical and methodological aspects and does not include a field study. It proposes hypotheses that can be tested in subsequent studies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Contemporary Islamic thought suffers from a sharp division between three models, each of which has failed to offer a comprehensive vision:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n 3.1. Political Islam (Religion Confined to Power):<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n This model focuses on the “state,” “power,” and “regime” as ultimate goals, thus embroiling religion in narrow partisan conflicts. Its fundamental problems are manifested in: reducing Islamic comprehensiveness to something resembling electoral programs, hindering constructive action in favor of ideological debate, clashing with the pluralistic fabric of Syrian society, and igniting conflicts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This logic has contributed to transforming Islam from a “mercy to all mankind” into an instrument of conflict.<\/p>\n\n\n\n 3.2. Popular Islam (A Static Religion Outside of History):<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n In contrast, this model preserves rituals, emotional practices, and metaphysics as a spiritual refuge, but remains incapable of confronting the challenges of material modernity. It is a religion of pacification, not change; it preserves identity but offers no answers on how to build an economy, operate state institutions, or manage diversity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Its limited effectiveness in preventing the collapse of social cohesion during the war has been demonstrated, but it lacks the instrumental rationality necessary for the transition process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n 3.3. Open Islam Without Identity (A Fluidity That Loses Center):<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n This model is the product of the provocative negativity of the two previous models. Muslims in this model adopt Western modernity values \u200b\u200bmechanically without linking them to a historical moral center, thus losing their ability to address the Syrian collective conscience and to ground fundamental concepts such as democracy or human rights in their local context.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Establishing a Civilizational Approach:<\/p>\n\n\n\n To break the rigidity of these models, we revisit authentic Islamic theoretical frameworks that transformed religion from a logic of conflict to a logic of construction:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Ibn Khaldun recognized that religion plays the role of spiritual “group solidarity,” that is, the moral compass that facilitates cooperation, but the ultimate goal of human existence is “civilization” (cities, economy, culture, institutions). For him, the state is inconceivable without civilization, and civilization cannot be achieved without social and moral cohesion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This concept seems to offer a basis for shifting the discussion from “the jurisprudence of conflict” to “the jurisprudence of civilization.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n Bennabi’s concept of civilization is based on the distinction between “accumulation” and “construction.” Accumulation is the accumulation of luxury without a productive spirit, while “building” is the capacity to create productive values \u200b\u200band ideas. In his view, the problem of the Islamic world is not so much external colonialism as it is a “susceptibility to colonialism” stemming from a civilizational bankruptcy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Therefore, the former The goal is to build a “civilized human being” capable of generating ideas, managing resources, and developing oneself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This is the individual who reads the Quran with one hand and grasps the tools of development with the other.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Syrian scholar Mustafa al-Siba’i elaborates on this vision in his book “From the Masterpieces of Our Civilization” (which was broadcast on Damascus Radio in 1955). Al-Siba’i emphasizes that the essence of civilized Islam lies in its “value-based achievements” of justice, social solidarity, knowledge, and human development.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This practical framework appears to advance the civilizational approach by moving from the narrow paradigm of “forbidden and permissible” to one of societal “benefit and harm,” and achieving the higher objectives of Islamic law (preservation of religion, life, intellect, lineage, and property).<\/p>\n\n\n\n Based on these theoretical foundations, we arrive at the practical question: Why Syria specifically?<\/p>\n\n\n\n Perhaps the answer lies in the long-standing tradition of the Syrian mindset.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Islam was not an alien concept in the Levant; rather, it intertwined with the Aramaic, Greek, and Byzantine heritage to produce a pioneering architectural and commercial culture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For example, Damascene and Aleppo societies were not known for isolated religious scholars, but rather for the “shopkeeper” and the “devout craftsman.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n Mosques were centers of both learning and industry, and the waqf (endowment) was the institution that guaranteed social cohesion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The bitter reality of Syria has proven that societies that preserved their traditional, moderate fabric were the most resilient.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Human development indicators show that Syria declined by 16% on the Human Development Index between 2010 and 2022, equivalent to losing 35 years of progress.<\/p>\n\n\n\n At the same time, we see that strengthening social cohesion is a necessary condition for any escape from fragmentation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This is precisely what the “civilizational Islam” proposal offers as a solution. It is not, and will not be, a new invention, but rather a revival of the “work ethos” inherent in the region’s history.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Features of the Proposed Civilizational Approach (Procedural Framework):<\/p>\n\n\n\n Civilizational Islam views the church, the mosque, and Syrian antiquities as equal components of the “Greater Syrian Identity.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n Before concluding, it is essential to acknowledge the limitations of this study. The author recognizes that this paper falls within the realm of philosophical theorizing and epistemological grounding, and does not claim to offer a field study or applied research.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This paper stems from an elitist reading of the historical Syrian experience, and we do not claim to represent the “Syrian mentality” in all its complexities and contradictions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The paper also acknowledges that generalizations regarding the “failure” of previous models may require further elaboration and specification, as some currents of “political Islam” or practices of “popular Islam” have made undeniable societal contributions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Finally, and most importantly, this contribution remains an invitation to open the door to academic discussion and dialogue on “civilizational Islam.” It is not a ready-made formula or a complete project, and its propositions remain open to critique, development, and testing in future studies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n What the “Syrian Future Movement” seeks is not the creation of a new ideology, but rather the rediscovery of the urban logic that has historically proven its effectiveness in Syria.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In other words, “civilizational Islam” is the logic that makes religion a driving force for national cohesion and a moral framework that protects everyone’s rights, without it becoming a political weapon or a foreign innovation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n To translate this paper into practical reality, we propose the following recommendations:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n The Syrian Future Movement, which defines itself as a civilized Islamic political movement, truly believes that building the “civilized individual” is the genuine gateway to a new and civilized Syrian renaissance, and that it is the authentic third way between the ideology of conflict, the rituals of stagnation, and the blind fascination with imported ideas.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" This paper presents a study of the vision of ‘civilizational Islam’ as an alternative framework for overcoming ideological conflicts and their impact on national construction.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":63890,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4667],"tags":[4716],"class_list":["post-63893","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-religious-office-en","tag-studies"],"yoast_head":"\n\n
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The Algerian thinker Malek Bennabi picked up on this thread to establish a comprehensive theory of the conditions for renaissance.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n\n
The Syrian Context:<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Based on the preceding diagnosis and theoretical foundation, three practical tools can be identified for implementing “Civilizational Islam”:<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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This aligns with the objectives of preserving intellect, property, and life.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
By restoring the aesthetic dimension of Syrian Islamic civilization (Damascene architecture, Andalusian music, and Arabic calligraphy), those who appreciate civilization find it difficult to destroy it.
Here, beauty serves as a cultural resistance against ugliness and extremism.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
By moving beyond the traditional “dhimmi” theory to the concept of “civilizational citizenship,” based on dignity and equality in rights and duties.
Civilizational Islam views the church, the mosque, and Syrian antiquities as equal components of the “Greater Syrian Identity.”<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\nConclusion:<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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